TROPION-Lung05 Phase 2 Trial of Datopotamab Deruxtecan Initiated in Patients with Advanced or Metastatic NSCLC with Actionable Genomic Alterations

On December 14, 2020 Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited (hereafter, Daiichi Sankyo) and AstraZeneca reported the initiation of TROPION-Lung05, a global phase 2 trial of datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd; DS-1062), a TROP2 directed antibody drug conjugate (ADC), in patients with advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with actionable genomic alterations previously treated with kinase inhibitor therapy and platinum-based chemotherapy with or without immunotherapy (Press release, Daiichi Sankyo, DEC 14, 2020, View Source [SID1234572821]).

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Targeted therapy with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) is recommended as first-line or in subsequent lines of treatment in patients with advanced or metastatic NSCLC that tests positive for certain genomic alterations as TKIs offer improved response rates or survival compared to traditional chemotherapy.1 However, once a patient develops acquired resistance to TKIs, treatment options become more limited.1,2

TROP2 expression has been associated with poor overall and disease-free survival in several types of solid tumors. TROP2 expression has been observed in the majority of adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma NSCLC.3,4,5 There are no TROP2 directed therapies or ADCs currently approved for the treatment of NSCLC.

"Following preliminary findings of durable responses observed in TROPION-PanTumor01, the ongoing phase 1 trial of datopotamab deruxtecan in non-small cell lung cancer, we will evaluate whether targeting TROP2 with our DXd ADC technology could be a new treatment strategy for patients with previously treated advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer with actionable genomic alterations," said Gilles Gallant, BPharm, PhD, FOPQ, Senior Vice President, Global Head, Oncology Development, Oncology R&D, Daiichi Sankyo.

"Many patients with NSCLC will ultimately develop resistance to available targeted therapies, and treatment options for advanced NSCLC are limited," said Cristian Massacesi, Senior Vice President, Head of Late Stage Development Oncology R&D, AstraZeneca. "TROPION-Lung05 provides an opportunity to evaluate datopotamab deruxtecan, a targeted ADC approach with promise in this patient population."

About TROPION-Lung05

The global, multicenter, single-arm, open-label phase 2 study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of datopotamab deruxtecan (6.0 mg/kg) in patients with advanced or metastatic NSCLC with actionable genomic alterations with progression on or after at least one tyrosine kinase inhibitor and at least one regimen of platinum-based chemotherapy (with or without other systemic therapies). Patients with one or more genomic alterations including EGFR, ALK, ROS1, NTRK, BRAF, RET, or MET exon 14 skipping who received up to four prior lines of treatment are eligible for the study.

The primary trial endpoint is overall response rate as assessed by blinded independent central review. Secondary efficacy endpoints include duration of response, best percentage change in the sum of diameters of measurable tumors, disease control rate, clinical benefit rate, progression-free survival, time to response, objective response rate and overall survival. Safety endpoints include treatment emergent adverse events and other safety parameters. Pharmacokinetic and immunogenicity endpoints also will be evaluated.

The study will enroll patients at multiple sites in North America, Europe and Asia. For more information visit Clinicaltrials.gov.

About Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC)

Lung cancer is the most common cancer and the leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide; there were an estimated 2.1 million new cases of lung cancer in 2018 and 1.8 million deaths.6 NSCLC accounts for 80 to 85 percent of all lung cancers.7

The majority of patients with advanced NSCLC traditionally received platinum-based chemotherapy as first-line treatment.8 The introduction of targeted therapies and immune checkpoint inhibitors in the past two decades has created new options and shifted treatment to a more personalized approach.8

A number of targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors, which offer improved survival rates over traditional chemotherapy regimens, are approved for treatment of NSCLC with specific genomic alterations.1 The most common alterations for which kinase inhibitors are approved are EGFR (approximately 10 to 35% frequency) and ALK rearrangement (approximately 3 to 7%). All patients eventually develop resistance to available therapies.2

About TROP2

TROP2 (trophoblast cell-surface antigen 2) is a transmembrane glycoprotein that is overexpressed in many cancers.9 TROP2 expression has been associated with poor overall and disease-free survival in several types of solid tumors. TROP2 expression has been observed in up to 64% of adenocarcinoma and up to 75% of squamous cell carcinoma NSCLC.3,4,5 There are no TROP2 directed therapies or ADCs currently approved for the treatment of NSCLC.

About Datopotamab Deruxtecan (Dato-DXd; DS-1062)

Datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd; DS-1062) is one of three lead DXd antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) in the oncology pipeline of Daiichi Sankyo.

ADCs are targeted cancer medicines that deliver cytotoxic chemotherapy ("payload") to cancer cells via a linker attached to a monoclonal antibody that binds to a specific target expressed on cancer cells. Designed using Daiichi Sankyo’s proprietary DXd ADC technology, datopotamab deruxtecan is comprised of a humanized anti-TROP2 IgG13 monoclonal antibody attached to a topoisomerase I inhibitor payload, an exatecan derivative, via a tetrapeptide-based cleavable linker with a drug-to-antibody ratio (DAR) of four.

TROPION is the broad and comprehensive clinical development program to evaluate the efficacy and safety of datopotamab deruxtecan across multiple TROP2 cancers as both a monotherapy and in combination with other anticancer treatments. In addition to TROPION-Lung05, datopotamab deruxtecan is currently being evaluated in a number of clinical trials, including TROPION-Lung01, a phase 3 study in patients with advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) without actionable genomic alterations and TROPION-PanTumor01, a phase 1 study in patients with advanced solid tumors that have progressed on standard treatments or for whom no standard treatment is available, which has completed enrollment of patients into a unresectable advanced NSCLC cohort and is currently enrolling patients into a triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) cohort.

Datopotamab deruxtecan is an investigational agent that has not been approved for any indication in any country. Safety and efficacy have not been established.

About the Collaboration between Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca

Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca entered into a global collaboration to jointly develop and commercialize trastuzumab deruxtecan (a HER2 directed ADC) in March 2019, and datopotamab deruxtecan (a TROP2 directed ADC) in July 2020, except in Japan where Daiichi Sankyo maintains exclusive rights. Daiichi Sankyo is responsible for manufacturing and supply of trastuzumab deruxtecan and datopotamab deruxtecan.

About Daiichi Sankyo Cancer Enterprise

The mission of Daiichi Sankyo Cancer Enterprise is to leverage our world-class, innovative science and push beyond traditional thinking to create meaningful treatments for patients with cancer. We are dedicated to transforming science into value for patients, and this sense of obligation informs everything we do. Anchored by our DXd antibody drug conjugate (ADC) technology, our powerful research engines include biologics, medicinal chemistry, modality and other research laboratories in Japan, and Plexxikon Inc., our small molecule structure-guided R&D center in Berkeley, CA. For more information, please visit: www.DSCancerEnterprise.com.

Teon Therapeutics Announces Approval for Collaboration with Cancer Research UK

On December 14, 2020 Teon Therapeutics, a private biopharmaceutical company developing a focused portfolio of small molecules that modulate metabolic signaling pathways in the tumor microenvironment, reported that Cancer Research UK, the world’s leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives, has formally approved Teon’s TT-702 program to enter into a clinical collaboration (Press release, Teon Therapeutics, DEC 14, 2020, View Source [SID1234572841]). TT-702, a first-in-class A2BR-specific antagonist being pursued in prostate cancer and other tumor types, expects to initiate a Phase 1b/2a clinical study in early 2021. In a collaboration, Cancer Research UK would sponsor and oversee the clinical trial, which will be run through the Centre for Drug Development. Future considerations would be contingent upon achievement of TT-702 development milestones by Teon.

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"We are excited for the opportunity to collaborate with Cancer Research UK," said Ken Horne, President and Chief Operating Officer of Teon Therapeutics. "They have helped develop 10 marketed cancer drugs, including Zytiga (abiraterone), Lynparza (olaparib), and Balversa (erdafitinib), so it is a tremendous honor to be approved to partner with Cancer Research UK under its Clinical Development Partnership initiative, which has seen 27 early clinical development collaborations established to date. We look forward to announcing more details around our collaboration in early 2021."

AXIM® Biotechnologies to Present at the 13th Annual LD Micro Main Event Investor Conference on Monday, December 14

On December 14, 2020 AXIM Biotechnologies, Inc. (OTCQB: AXIM) ("AXIM Biotech," "AXIM" or "the Company"), an international healthcare solutions company targeting oncological and COVID-19 research, reported that the Company’s CEO John W. Huemoeller II will be presenting at the 13th Annual LD Micro Main Event investor conference on Monday, December 14, 2020, at 11:00 a.m. PST/2:00 p.m. EST (Press release, AXIM Biotechnologies, DEC 14, 2020, View Source;utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=axim-biotechnologies-to-present-at-the-13th-annual-ld-micro-main-event-investor-conference-on-monday-december-14 [SID1234572924]).

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During the 10-minute presentation, Huemoeller will discuss AXIM’s COVID-focused research and testing tools, including an update on progress around the Company’s Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) application on its rapid point-of-care COVID-19 neutralizing antibody test. Directly following his presentation, Huemoeller will take questions from a panel of investors and analysts.

AXIM Biotech CEO John W. Huemoeller II commented: "As we move close to having the first COVID-19 vaccines available in the U.S., our rapid COVID-19 neutralizing antibody test can serve as an easy, quick and relatively inexpensive way for researchers to determine the efficacy of their vaccines. I look forward to presenting on this topic and the other highlights of AXIM’s COVID-focused research during the LD Micro Main Event investor conference."

To register for the conference, visit ve.mysequire.com/. The LD Micro Main Event investor conference will take place on December 14th and 15th, exclusively on the Sequire Virtual Events platform.

Junshi’s PD-1 Meets Survival Endpoint as First-Line NSCLC Treatment

On December 14, 2020 Shanghai Junshi Bio reported its lead anti-PD-1 drug met the primary endpoint in an interim analysis as a first-line treatment in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) (Press release, Shanghai Junshi Bioscience, DEC 14, 2020, View Source [SID1234572964]). Toripalimab (JS001), which was administered in combination with chemotherapy in a China trial among patients with advanced disease, showed improvement in progression-free survival, though specific results were not disclosed. In 2018, toripalimab was first approved in China as a second-line treatment for unresectable or metastatic melanoma.

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SELLAS Announces Pricing of $16.2 Million Registered Direct Offering

On December 13, 2020 SELLAS Life Sciences Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: SLS) ("SELLAS" or the "Company"), a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel cancer immunotherapies for a broad range of cancer indications, reported that it has entered into a share purchase agreement with institutional investors to purchase approximately $16.2 million of its common stock in a registered direct offering at a purchase price of $7.00 per share (Press release, Sellas Life Sciences, DEC 13, 2020, View Source [SID1234572776]).

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Under the terms of the share purchase agreement, SELLAS has agreed to sell 2,320,000 shares of its common stock. The gross proceeds to the Company from the registered direct offering are expected to be approximately $16.2 million before deducting the placement agent’s fees and other offering expenses. The registered direct offering is expected to close on or about December 16, 2020, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

Maxim Group LLC is acting as the exclusive lead placement agent in connection with the offering.

The shares of common stock are being offered pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-233869) previously filed and declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor will there be any sales of these shares of common stock in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction. A prospectus supplement relating to the shares of common stock will be filed by SELLAS with the SEC. When available, copies of the prospectus supplement relating to the registered direct offering, together with the accompanying prospectus, can be obtained at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or from Maxim Group LLC, 405 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10174, Attention: Syndicate Department, or via email at [email protected] or telephone at (212) 895-3745.